Following the footsteps of a wolf
by Valena the Guardian
Summary: I suck at summaries.
1. Chapter 1

Kaita Jirosho, a kunoichi and the last of her clan, wanders the streets of Otogakure in wolf form, having found it easier than if she were human, her black and pale yellow tail dragging in the dirt, turning it a dusty light brown and gray, mismatched eyes taking in her surroundings.

A nearby shopowner, who had been outside talking to one of his customers, picks up a large rock and throws it at her, catching her square in the face. "Go back to where you came from, you little bitch!"

She yelps, and backs into someone standing in a group that had gathered behind her.  
The group, harboring the same feelings about her as the shopowner, either pull out whatever they have hidden in their shirts and pants pockets or pick up rocks, and start to attack her.

She breaks her way through, and runs off, sliding to a stop in front of an alley where a boy, who seems to be in a similar state as she is, is holding a bag with two loaves of bread in it, two men slowly approaching him.  
Not wanting to see the boy, who looks to be about the age of eight, be hurt, she slinks in and stands between the two men and him, baring her teeth.

The two men, starting to show signs of fear, slowly back out of the alley.  
She lets out a snort once they're out of sight, and turns to the boy.

The boy pulls out one of the loaves of bread, and tears off a piece, holding it out to her.  
She takes it gently from his hand before eating it. Once she's done, she walks to the back, hoping that the shadows will hide her transformation back to human form from him.

The boy, having finished eating the first loaf of bread, hears what he thinks is the wolf panting in the shadows when a hand suddenly emerges.

Kaita continues to pant, though she's able to talk now that most of the pain from her transformation back into her human form has faded. "Would you mind finding me some clothes? It seems that someone has stolen the few articles I left here."

The boy nods, and runs off, though not before replying. "My name's Zaku Abumi? What's yours?"  
She pokes her head out, her red eye hidden behind her black and pale yellow bangs. "My name's Kaita Jirosho."  
Zaku smiles. "Nice to meet you, Kaita."

She nods in response, keeping her senses alert in case the two men from before return.

* * *

Zaku comes back half an hour later, arms loaded down with clothes. "Here. I grabbed as much as I could. I hope they fit."  
"Thanks." She replies, and takes them, trying the first set of clothes on, only to find that they're way too big on her. She moves on to the rest of the clothes until she finds a pair that fit her. After adjusting the straps on her sandals, the only thing that wasn't taken, she steps out, hair now pulled back into a low ponytail that stops at her hips.

He can't help but stare at how beautiful Kaita looks with her hair pulled back away from her face.  
She notices, and giggles softly.

He suddenly looks away, a blush coloring his cheeks.  
She moves to stand next to him. "Sorry if I made you nervous, Zaku."  
He forces himself to look her in the eye. "It's okay."

She kisses his cheek before moving to the entrance leading in to the alley.  
His blush darkens briefly before fading, and he moves to stand next to her.

She gazes out at the people walking up and down the street, a few even stopping to point at her and Zaku, and sneer, talking amongst themselves about how they're both orphans, and therefore useless and unwanted.

He cringes when one of the people who had stopped to sneer at, and ridicule, them picks up a rock and throws it at them, though he feels no pain.  
Kaita, having turned around to shield Zaku, winces, having been hit in the back, just below her left shoulder, that leaves a hand sized blood stain that causes her shirt to stick to the skin around where the rock had made contact.

He notices the blood soaking through her shirt, and grinds his teeth.  
She squeezes his shoulder slightly before regaining her composure, not wanting to give the adults the satisfaction that they had finally gotten to her. "I think it's time for us to leave."  
He nods, and uses a transportation jutsu to teleport them to the outskirts of Otogakure. "I don't know where we'll be able to go."  
She winces, but otherwise ignores her wounded back. "I heard someone passing through say that Konohagakure's one of the few places that'll take in orphans."


	2. Chapter 2

Zaku and Kaita, having talked about where they'd stay once they reached Konohagakure, are now standing outside the gates leading in to the village.

Izumo, having been vigilant in his role of lookout, smacks Kotetsu, who's taking a nap. "Wake up, idiot, there are two kids outside the gates."  
Kotetsu blinks sleepily at his friend before yawning and turning over on his side. "You deal with it, Izumo. I didn't get much sleep last night."  
Izumo resists the urge to kick his more laidback companion. "Yeah, right. We both know that you were out drinking with Genma and the others again."

Kotetsu pretends to snore.  
Izumo sighs, and gives up, knowing that he won't get through to his friend.  
Bari, Tsume Inuzuka's niece, appears next to Izumo, her ninja hound, Yuna, sister to the Haimaru triplets, next to her.  
Izumo, having always had a crush on her, tries not to blush, though he fails.

She smiles faintly, having only one of the two red fang-like tattooes since her father was an outsider her aunt didn't approve of.  
His blush fades. "Is there something you needed, Bari?"  
She nods. "I came to take over for Kotetsu, since he's not gonna be much help."

Yuna, having grown attached to Kotetsu, goes over to him and paws at his back.

Kotetsu rolls over onto his left side and pets the red and white husky-looking dog.

Kaita calls up to Izumo and Bari, asking if one of them would open the gates.  
Bari leans over. "Just a minute, please." She pulls back to look at Izumo. "Should we let them in? For all we know, they could be spies from another village."

Izumo looks thoughtful for a few moments. "I agree with you about the possibilty that they could be spies, but we'll never know unless we let them in. Plus, they're only children."

Bari sighs. "Fine. I just hope the Hokage won't freak out." She opens the gates, letting Zaku and Kaita in to the village.


	3. Chapter 3

Yuki Mudo, Iruka's fellow teacher, comes into his classroom, and whispers something in his ear.  
Iruka, trying not to alarm his students and failing, yells. "He did what?"  
She turns to the class. "Please excuse Iruka-sensei for just a moment." Not waiting for him to assign homework to his class, she drags him out into the hallway.  
He starts to curse, face beginning to turn red. "I knew it was a bad idea letting the Hokage give Naruto free reign over the village."  
She puts her hands on his shoulders. "Iruka, calm down. I'm sure it can't be that bad."

He takes a deep breath. "You're probably right, Yuki." He offers her a smile. "Would you like to go and have some ramen or something with me tonight?"  
She blushes faintly, but smiles back. "I'd love too."

He gives her hand a squeeze. "I'll pick you up at eight."

She squeezes back. "See you then, Iruka." She lets her hand slide free from his before leaving the classroom.

* * *

She moves closer to him. "It's rude to leave a girl who brought you food outside in the cold." She replies teasingly.  
He coughs before stepping aside, letting her in, closing the door behind her. "Thanks for coming over, Setsuna. I was meaning to ask you something." He digs around in his pocket.  
She sets the basket down on his livingroom table before sitting on the couch.  
He gets down on one knee in front of her. "I know I won't be around forever because of my poor health, so I was wondering if you'd like to become my wife?"  
She gasps, having come over to simply have lunch with him. "I'll need some time to think about it, Hayate. Before you jump to the wrong conclusion, it's nothing to do with you. I just need to fimd a wedding dress, and think about our future, before saying yes."

He sighs, setting the ring box on the table, and sits down next to her. "I'll be looking forward to your answer, Setsuna."  
She squeezes his hand briefly before letting go. "I know. Well, I think we should eat now before the food gets cold." She serves him first before serving herself, fully aware that he could've gotten his own ramen, but, since she's such a kind person, she thought she'd do it for him.


	4. Chapter 4

Raika, a new kid who had moved to Suna, though not with her parents, who had been killed on the way there, takes in the sight of the other kids playing, one in particular catching her attention. Curious to see if he would like to be her friend, she goes over to him.

Gaara, having thought he would always be alone, blinks when she stops in front of him and smiles. "Who're you, and why aren't you afraid of me?"  
She lets the smile fade, though her eyes are still unclouded by fear. "My name's Raika. I just arrived." She moves closer to him. "What's your name?"  
He blinks again. "My name's Gaara. Nice to meet you, Raika."  
She smiles again. "As to why I'm not afraid of you, I also have a tailed beast, Suzaku, who is one of the one-tailed Shukaku's followers, sealed inside of me. I think my mom said that the two one-tailed beasts were once lovers before Shukaku turned evil."

He looks at her disbelievingly. "Really?"

She nods. "Yeah." She turns her gaze to the moon, which is starting to come up. "My mom always liked to watch the moon come up." She sits down, pulling her knees close to her chest, wrapping her arms around them.

Gaara, wanting to comfort her, but is unsure how to, since no one ever bothered to comfort him, just blinks at her. "I'm sorry."

She sniffles, but doesn't look away from the moon, her voice soft. "Thanks."

He blinks more. "You're welcome."

* * *

Raika, having not seen Gaara for a few days, is walking past his house when she hears a commotion above her. Worried that something's happened to Gaara, she pulls open the door before darting up the steps, panting when she reaches the roof, shocked to find what she assumes as his uncle, Yashamaru, Gaara in tears.


End file.
